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Home » Recipes » Food

Published: Mar 1, 2022, By: Melissa, Updated: Oct 15, 2023

Texas Chili Recipe

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Texas style chili is not the same as the chili you probably grew up with- it's better! This Texas chili recipe has no beans, no tomatoes and it's made with cubed chuck beef that is cooked for hours until tender and delicious. This Texas chili is the real deal and one that I am certain everyone will love.

real texas chili
Texas Chili.

I have been living in Austin, Texas for a while now and I am now finally getting around to documenting some of the most iconic foods in this state and one of my favorite recipes that I make. Texas chili is a very serious thing here and I have definitely eaten a lot of it since living in Texas.

For me, what has been most helpful in learning about Texas chili is being a judge for our area's chili cook-off. You get to meet cooks from all over the state who come to participate.

This is how I learned to make this chili also known as "bowl of red", with no beans and no tomatoes. If you like those, my Dutch oven chili recipe or brisket chili is for you. For this chili, the beautiful red color actually comes from chile peppers that are used to make the chili.

The chile peppers are blended with liquid until smooth and the meat is cooked in this puree for hours until it is tender. Real Texas chili is NOT made with ground beef.

These are the basics of Tof authentic Texas chili and what makes Texas it unique. Similar to a Chile con carne, and so delicious.

bowl of texas chili

Ingredients

  • Beef chuck.
  • Lots of dried chile peppers. I like to use a variety of chile peppers that have varying levels of heat and sweetness. My favorites for this recipe are dried Ancho chiles, Arbol chiles, and New Mexico chiles. You can usually find these in the grocery store sold in bags either in the International food section or the spice section.
  • Chicken stock. This is the liquid that you add to the chile peppers to make a sauce. You can also use beef stock or water.
  • Kosher salt and pepper
  • Onions
  • Garlic.
  • Masa. This is for thickening the chili up before serving. You can also cook up a torn flour tortilla into the chili to thicken it up. If you do not have this, you can use this Beurre Manie recipe instead.
  • The secret ingredient that I add at the end..... Dark chocolate. You do not taste the chocolate and only a little is added but trust me it makes all the difference in the World!

How to make Texas Chili

soaking chiles
1. Soak the chile peppers in liquid.
onions and garlic for chili
2. Prep garlic and onions.
pureed chiles
3. Puree peppers and liquid.
chuck for texas chili
4. Cut beef into large cubes.

Steps 1-4 are prepping all of your ingredients for the Texas chili. This will be the bulk of the time in preparing this recipe and the following steps are just putting it all together and letting it cook (hands-off time).

When cubing the meat, you really want to cut the meat into larger pieces because they really shrink in size after cooking. I aim for about 1 ½ - 2 inch cubes.

meat browning
5. Sear the cubed chuck beef.
beef for chili
6. You will need to do this in batches like I did here.
chile pepper sauce
7. Sauté aromatics then add pureed chile peppers.
beef chuck in chili
8. add seared meat back into pot.
pot of chili
9. Cover with lid leaving a little space for steam to escape and allow to simmer for 2-3 hours.

How to serve

This hearty Texas chili is great served with:

  • Warmed Soft Flour tortillas. This is my preference for this Texas chili recipe because the tortillas are traditional and really hold large pieces of meat well.
  • Cornbread. This makes a wonderful side to all versions of chili.
  • Tortilla chips. If you cannot get a hold of flour tortillas, tortilla chips work well too.
  • Great toppings! I like to add a simple shredded cheddar and sliced jalapeño topping to my Texas chili. You can add sour cream, avocado, Fritos (Texans love to add Fritos!), or any chili topping you prefer.
texas chili

More beef roasts you may like:

  • pot roast sandwich on a plate
    Pot Roast Sandwich (Slow Cooker Recipe)
  • Mexican barbacoa
    Mexican Barbacoa
  • pasta genovese top view
    Authentic Pasta Alla Genovese Recipe (Beef And Onion Genovese Roast With Pasta)
  • cuban ropa vieja
    Ropa Vieja (Ropa Vieja Cubana)
A pot with Texas chili in it on a stovetop.
texas chili
Print Recipe
5 from 5 votes

Texas Chili Recipe

A delicious slow cooked Texas chili made with large pieces of beef and no tomatoes and no beans.
Prep Time35 minutes mins
Cook Time3 hours hrs
Total Time3 hours hrs 35 minutes mins
Servings: 8 servings
Author: Melissa Oleary

Equipment

  • large heavy bottom dutch oven

Ingredients

  • 5 lbs chuck roast cubed into 1 ½-2 inch pieces and make sure to trim any excess fat from the outside before cubing the meat.
  • 10 dried chile peppers (seeds removed) I use a mix of dried Arbol, New Mexico and Ancho Chile peppers. You can use any variety you like or can find.
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 48 ounces unsalted chicken stock divided
  • 2 ounces dark chocolate
  • 2 tbsp masa harina
  • 5 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 Spanish onion finely diced
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt plus more to taste

Instructions

Preparing the ingredients

  • Cut the chile peppers in half and remove the seeds.
    10 dried chile peppers (seeds removed)
  • Place chile peppers in a medium microwave safe bowl and microwave for 20 seconds to warm them.
  • Remove the peppers from the microwave then add 32 ounces of chicken stock to the bowl of peppers and place back in the microwave and heat for 2 minutes.
  • Remove bowl from the microwave, cover and let sit for 15 minutes.
  • Chop the onions and garlic and set aside.
    1 Spanish onion, 5 cloves garlic
  • Cut the meat into 1 ½ - 2 inch cubes and set aside.
    5 lbs chuck roast
  • Now add the chile peppers and the liquid to a high speed blender and puree until smooth.

Cooking the Chili.

  • Pre-heat a large bottom dutch oven over medium heat.
  • Add vegetable oil to pot.
    1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • Now add the meat in batches and sear the meat on all sides.
  • Once the meat is all seared, remove the meat from the pot and set aside.
  • Add onions to the pot and sauté onions for 3 -4 minutes.
  • Now add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
  • Add the pureed chile peppers to the pot and stir.
  • Add the remaining chicken stock (16 ounces) to the pot along with the kosher salt and mix well.
    1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • Add the meat back into the pot and make sure to press the meat down into the liquid with a spoon so the meat is coated with the liquid.
  • Bring the meat to a simmer then reduce heat to low.
  • Place a lid on the pot almost all the way, leaving the lid cracked a little to allow the steam to escape.
  • Cook for 2- 3 hours stirring occasionally (about every 30 minutes.)
  • After the meat is tender, add the masa and dark chocolate to the pot and stir until incorporated.
    2 ounces dark chocolate, 2 tablespoon masa harina
  • Taste for any additional salt.
  • Serve with warmed tortillas and lime wedges.

Notes

Masa is a really helpful thickener for this chili recipe and it also imparts a traditional flavor found in Texas chili.
If you do not have Masa, you can tear up a tortilla into small pieces towards the end of the cooking and add that to the pot to break down and thicken the chili.

Nutrition

Calories: 633kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 60g | Fat: 38g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 18g | Trans Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 201mg | Sodium: 1784mg | Potassium: 1217mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 216IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 70mg | Iron: 7mg

Nutrition Values are estimates only.

See full nutrition disclaimer here

Tried the Recipe? We Would Love To Hear From You In The Comments Below!

Course :Main Course

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    5 from 5 votes (5 ratings without comment)

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  1. Melissa says

    September 23, 2022 at 10:04 pm

    I love hearing that Rick! Thanks for sharing 🙂

    Reply
  2. Melissa says

    September 18, 2022 at 1:21 pm

    Thank you. I am so glad to hear that!

    Reply

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I am so excited you are here. My name is Melissa and I started this recipe website to share easy recipes that I have been cooking for years. I have written hundreds of easy recipes that are tested and perfected. Some of the recipes I learned during my years of working in restaurants, some from owning my own food company, and others from friends and traveling.

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